Hey,

Happy Wednesday!

When you talk to your dog and refer to your spouse or partner, what do you call them? Or, if you don’t have a spouse or partner, what do you call yourself?

Do you use their or your name? Or do you use, say, mommy or daddy?

(If you say you don’t talk to your dog, I refuse to believe you.)

Full disclosure: my wife and I use mummy and daddy (she’s Irish, I’m English). It began as a semi-joke but now I really can’t imagine us using each other’s name. And we wouldn’t use “your master/mistress” because it’s not 1897. 

I doubt very much that we’re alone. This is because humans’ relationship with our dogs has changed over 15,000 or so years that we’ve been domesticating them.

These days, rather than being workers or mere companions, dogs in a decent home are almost universally seen as family members.

It’s something that younger generations are taking to new levels, not only in the way they speak to their dogs, but in their purchasing decisions, not least when it comes to dog food. 

There's been a shift from anthropomorphism (attributing human qualities to an animal) to 'humanization' (seeing dogs as humans).

We discuss the change and what it means in this article:

Humanization: From Dog Owners to Dog Parents

Please note, there is absolutely no judgement when it comes to this subject. You may see your dog as an actual human child or you may have them sleep in a kennel — that’s your business.

This article is primarily a look at trends — although the expert psychologist we speak to does highlight the potential issues around behavior if we try to treat dogs as kids and explain their actions through that lens.

I’m off to play with my furry son (that’s the dog, by the way, I don’t have a hairy human son).

Until next time,

Andrew

Editor
The Dog Food Advisor
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